


When I'm No Longer Young and Beautiful

by Dawn on ICE (Dawn_Blossom)



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Victuuri in their 70s, Victuuri's failure to communicate taken far beyond reasonable bounds, mentions of death (because they're old and have outlived people), with possibly the longest resolution time ever
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2017-08-06
Packaged: 2018-12-12 00:03:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11725341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dawn_Blossom/pseuds/Dawn%20on%20ICE
Summary: It isn't until he's in his 70s that Yuuri confesses the romantic love he's always felt for Victor, his closest friend.





	When I'm No Longer Young and Beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so, first thing you need to know is that this is technically an AU to [ Winning Hearts,](http://archiveofourown.org/works/9285995) but don't worry if you haven't read it; you'll still be able to understand this. Just know that Yuuri and Victor met when they were 13 and 17 respectively, and they became close friends really quickly. 
> 
> Now, in Winning Hearts, they do eventually get together. But before that, there's a line where Phichit and Yuuri are talking. Yuuri's like ohhhh I'm in love with him but he doesn't like me romantically, how could he when he's known me since I was a dumb kid, blah blah. Then Phichit says this:
> 
> “Okay, I’ll let it go. But when you’re both 100 and you’ve been living together for 70 years I want you to think back to this and—“
> 
> And recently I've been reading a lot of mutual pining fics, and I thought to myself, "oh my god, what if these ridiculous boys literally never confessed their feelings." And then I remembered Phichit's line from Winning Hearts, and in a flash I knew what I had write.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy reading this! Also, if you'd like, you can check out my YOI tumblr ([@dawnonice](http://dawnonice.tumblr.com)), where I sometimes give advanced notice of my weird fic ideas.

“Hey, Yuuri,” Victor asks from his position next to Yuuri on their loveseat. “I’ve been thinking.”

“Oh, really?” Yuuri replies sarcastically, though his fond smile softens the words. “That’s dangerous coming from you, Vitya.”

“ _So_ dangerous,” Victor agrees. “That’s why I’m telling _you_ about it.”

“Hmm… also dangerous,” Yuuri teases. “What was it that Yurio said? We barely have half a brain cell between us?”

“Yurio’s a brat,” Victor says.

“He’s 66 years old, Vitya,” Yuuri reminds him.

“A 66 year-old brat,” Victor insists.

“Maybe a little,” Yuuri agrees.

They both laugh in unison. After so many years of being by each other’s side, many of their movements are synchronized like this. The two of them share everything: their home, their money, their very _lives._ Even the wrinkles on their faces mirror each other, telling stories of shared joys and sorrows.

“Okay, okay, seriously,” Yuuri continues once their laughter has died down. “What was it you were going to say?”

“Yes, what was I saying…” Victor murmurs, placing a finger to his mouth in thought. “Ah, I remember. I was thinking about life. Do you have any regrets in life, Yuuri?”

“Wait, what?” Yuuri asks.

“I said—” Victor starts, raising his voice.

“No, no, I _heard_ you,” Yuuri interrupts. “I just meant… Vitya, what brought this on? Do… Do you have regrets?”

“Oh, sure,” Victor says with a shrug. “I wish I’d been kinder to Yakov. I wish I could have been more open—not with you, I mean; you know you’re the only one I’ve ever truly trusted—but there were so many others… our rinkmates, our friends, Yakov and Lilia, your family… I never wanted to hide myself from them, and Yuuri, you taught me so much about how to be honest, but… I could have been better.” Victor lets out a sigh, leaning slightly onto Yuuri. “And then there’s competition stuff. For example, I wish I hadn’t impulsively tried a quad axel and hurt myself.”

Yuuri wraps a comforting arm around Victor’s shoulder.

“Is that old injury acting up again?” Yuuri asks gently.

“Not right now,” Victor assures him. “And anyway, the point is that even though I haven’t lived my life with no regrets, I’m still happy with where I ended up. Even if… No, sorry, it’s nothing.”

“Victor Nikiforov,” Yuuri says sternly. “You did _not_ just speak beautifully about how I taught you how to be honest, only to _lie_ to me, did you? I know it wasn’t nothing.”

Victor laughs sheepishly.

“See, Yuuri, even now I could be better,” he says with a soft smile. “How about this: I’ll tell you after you answer the question I asked you.”

“Do I have any regrets in life?” Yuuri repeats. “Well… Yeah, of course. I guess my biggest regret is… not being there for Vicchan when he… Yeah…”

“Oh,” Victor says softly. He squeezes Yuuri’s hand. “But Yuuri, that wasn’t your fault.”

“I know..” Yuuri sighs. “I know. I believe you, but you can still regret things you aren’t responsible for. And I wish I had been with him.”

“Of course,” Victor whispers. 

The two sit there quietly for a few minutes. They’ve experienced many losses over the course of their lives, but they both know that Vicchan’s death has always weighed particularly heavily on Yuuri. It isn’t the first time they’ve talked about it. By this point, there’s not much for either of them to say. A moment of respectful silence for Yuuri’s first pet is all they have left to give.

“Okay, Vitya,” Yuuri says eventually. “It’s your turn.”

“Ah, well,” Victor says with just the slightest bit of nervousness. There is a reason he had stopped himself from saying it in the first place, after all. “I was just going to say that I was lucky to meet you. Even if I did end up stealing you from the world.”

Yuuri chokes so hard that he nearly falls out of his seat. Victor, ever-concerned about Yuuri’s wellbeing, pats his back apologetically.

“You think _you_ stole me?” Yuuri asks as soon as he recovers. “That’s… That is…”

“A miracle,” Victor insists. “I’m the luckiest person alive. But I suppose I’ve always wondered if this was really what you wanted. You never said anything about it, Yuuri, but you really gave up a lot to stay with me. You moved here to Saint Petersburg for me. You moved into my apartment. We bought this house together. Even though we did our own activities sometimes, I don’t think we’ve spent more than a week apart since our thirties. You never dated anyone, you never got married, you never started a family of your own. And I know that’s all my fault. Selfishly, I demanded all of you. And you gave it, even though I never deserved it.”

“Oh, Vitya,” Yuuri says. His eyes are warm. “I didn’t mind any of that. It made me happy. I only ever wanted to spend my life with _you._ ”

“But you could have had so much more,” Victor says. “You could have found someone you love, married them, and adopted 500 adorable children. Like with that one guy. You know, the American? With the thing?”

It’s a testament to how well they know each other that Yuuri doesn’t even have to think about who Victor is talking about.

“Horace Spring,” Yuuri says flatly. “He mispronounced my name and then said he had a yacht that he’d use to take me around the world. As if I hadn’t already been to more countries than he knew the name of.” Yuuri snorts. “I’m offended that you think I would ever like him.”

“Okay, so maybe not him,” Victor says. “But there were others, and some of them were much better than me—”

“No!” Yuuri snaps. “Nobody is better than you. Not in the whole world. I know you never saw me as a romantic partner, and I’ve always been happy because I don’t care what we are as long as we’re together. But I could never look at anyone else. You’ve always had my heart, Vitya.”

“I what?” Victor gasps. “Yuuri, you...” Tears gather at the corner of his eyes. It’s probably the millionth time he’s cried in front of Yuuri, but he’s still never prepared for the sudden feeling of wetness sliding down his cheeks. Yuuri’s the only one who can draw such strong emotions from him. Yuuri, the love of his life. Yuuri, who never seemed interested in having a romantic relationship before now, but who just confessed that he _would_ have been.

“Oh, no,” Yuuri murmurs sadly. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. How can you call yourself selfish when I sit over here and do things like this? I’m so, so sorry.”

“You should have been more selfish!” Victor exclaims. “All this time, Yuuri. All this time I would have given you anything you wanted, if I’d just known. You have my heart, too, Yuuri! My heart, my soul, my everything. Oh, god, I love you so much. Will you…”

He reaches out, cupping Yuuri’s cheek with his hand. His own tears are drying up, but now it’s Yuuri who looks vulnerable. 

“Will you let me kiss you now?” Victor asks tenderly.

“Victor… You would still…?” Yuuri asks, a little breathless. “I know you thought I was beautiful when we were younger, but now…”

“You’re still beautiful,” Victor insists. “You are the most beautiful man I have ever laid my eyes upon, and I want to kiss you so badly.”

“I… I want to kiss you, too,” Yuuri admits. “I love you, Vitya. I hope this makes you happy. I know I feel happy.”

And he presses his lips against Victor’s. It’s slow, gentle, sweet, and it feels just right, like the natural extension of everything they’ve ever done together.

“Ah, I would have done that at least 50 years ago if I’d known,” Yuuri murmurs happily, raising a hand to his lips.

“I would have begged you to,” Victor says. “Just think of all the kissing we could have been doing. Kissing on the podium. Kissing on the plane. Kissing at the banquet. So much kissing.”

Yuuri laughs.

“We could have,” he agrees. “Everyone thought we were dating, anyway. They never believed us when we said we weren’t.”

“Our matching rings didn’t help— wait!” Victor exclaims. “Yuuri, let’s get married! Do you want to?”

“Married?” Yuuri gasps. “Vitya, you never stop surprising me, you know that? But why shouldn’t we? We’ve always been together! Yes, let’s do it!”

“Yurio will help us plan!” Victor says excitedly. “Chris and Phichit will be our best men, of course. Who else are we inviting? Otabek? Kenjirou? Mila and Sara?”

“Yes, and Leo and Guang Hong. And Georgi,” Yuuri adds. “Oh, and everyone’s children, too, if they want to come.”

“We should have it in—” Victor starts

“—Hasetsu,” Yuuri finishes. Victor nods vigorously.

“I miss Mari’s kids,” Victor says. “Do you think they’ll be happy to see us?”

“The last time we saw them was at Mari’s funeral. I think it would be good to have something to celebrate with them this time,” Yuuri says, already halfway to calling them.

“And Yuuko’s always telling us to come visit her,” Victor adds. “Yuuri, what’s been taking us so long?”

The wedding is a bit of a whirlwind affair, delayed only by the need to pick a time that all their friends are available. But then, technically, they’ve been waiting for this for over half a century. They’ve already spent an excessive amount of time _not_ being married.

“I love you, Yuuri,” Victor says, happy tears welling in his eyes. “We’ve been together for most of our lives. Do you promise we’ll spend the rest of them together?”

“Oh, Vitya, That’s all I’ve ever wanted” Yuuri says. His eyes, too, sparkle with joyful tears. “I do.”

**Author's Note:**

> By the way, if you're wondering how Yurio reacted when they asked him for help:
> 
> "Are you telling me that you idiots didn't secretly elope in Barcelona?" he growls. "I thought you didn't want the press coverage; I didn't know you were just that stupid. No brain cells between you!"
> 
> ("Oh, no, we've been downgraded," Yuuri whispers.)
> 
> "Since you obviously can't be trusted to do anything right, I guess I'll have to help you with your wedding," Yurio continues. "I just happen to have some free time. Don't think that I like you geezers or anything."


End file.
